New Faces
by SkywalkerSensei
Summary: Things in Amity get interesting, as a new ghost with a vendetta arrives, seeking to stir things up with an old enemy...
1. Chapter One A New Ally?

NOTE;THIS IS MY FIRST FANFIC. PLEASE BE PATIENT.

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Disclaimer-I have nothing Danny related, much to my shame...

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Dedication- To those trying to save the show.

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Danny Phantom in; 

NEW FACES.

Written by SkywalkerSensei

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Wisconsin, 6 months ago... 

He screamed. He couldn't keep it in. It felt like there was fire rushing through his veins, supplanting his blood. "_Please_," he begged silently. "_Just end it. Just kill me. Please..._" Suddenly, it stopped. He raised his head weakly and opened his eyes.

"Oh, what's the matter," the sadist in front of him asked sardonically. "Does it hurt? Do you want it to end?" He nodded weakly, sick of it all.

"Too bad." The sadist said, his voice cold, laced with venom. "You can't stop it. I will have my vision fulfilled. I will have you. And I will have the others. The perfect family!"

His voice was suddenly filled with false brightness, false hope. He felt anger well up in him.

"Sir, we're reading a spike on the meter," one of the technical crew members said. "The chemicals are working."

"Good," the sadist said. He turned back to his victim.

"Don't worry. Soon, you will learn proper respect. Whether you want to or not..." He turned to the lab techs. "Give him another shot."

"N-no...please," he said weakly, pleading. But his plea fell on deaf ears. The needles pierced his skin, and the feeling returned. And the screaming resumed.

* * *

Amity Park. Present day. 

"_I **REALLY **do not have time for this,_" Danny Phantom thought.

It was 11:30 at night, and instead of sleeping soundly in his bed, he was busy tracking down Skulker. Needless to say, it wasn't exactly his idea of a night on the town.

"_Ah well, whatever_," he thought. "_Such is the struggle of a hero." _

"C'mon Skulker," Danny called out into starry sky. "We both know how this is going to end. So why don't you just save us both some trouble? Just c'mon out, let me suck you into the Thermos, and we can both get some sleep."

It was an obvious ploy, luring out the ghost hunter into a trap by attacking his swelled ego. He would never go for it.

Wrong.

Skulker suddenly came out of nowhere, elbowing Danny in the stomach, and knocking him back several feet. "That's for thinking I'd fall for such an obvious ploy," Skulker declared proudly.

Danny groaned. It felt like his last meal was staging a desperate escape. He looked up and saw Skulker grinning arrogantly. "_Idiot_," Danny thought. "_You **did** fall for it_." Skulker, in his attempt to teach Danny a lesson, had finally revealed himself, giving Danny a chance to go in for the kill. He groaned again, doubling over, like he was in pain. "_Come on Skulker_," he thought."_Start your gloating. I just need a few seconds..._"

Skulker, a few feet away, was surprised. He hadn't expected his quarry to take such a light hit so badly. "_Oh well_," he thought. "_It just makes it easier to capture him_."

"What's the matter whelp?"

Danny responded with a groan. Just a few more seconds...

"Maybe you're not worthy of my attention. Maybe I've been wasting my time..."

Suddenly Danny started laughing. Skulker glared at him, annoyed at his prey's lack of respect, and a little worried that he had something up his sleeve. "_No_," he thought. "_I'm just_ _being paranoid_."

Unfortunately for Skulker, Danny DID have something up his sleeve.

"Hey Skulker..."

"Wh-what?"

Suddenly, twin rays of green light hit him, coming from Danny's palms.

"Talk to the hand."

He was surprised that the ploy had worked so well. He'd fed Skulker's ego, acting like he was badly hurt, when in reality, he'd gotten over the hit pretty quickly. The real trick had been covering his hands while he was charging his attack. If the ghost hunter had seen his palms glowing, he would've known something was up. That was the point of doubling over. By hitting the ground and grabbing his sides, he was able to cover his glowing palms, while fooling Skulker into thinking he'd hurt Danny badly, and luring him into a false sense of security.

He unsheathed the Fenton Thermos and sucked Skulker up.

"Well Skulker," Danny said. "Thanks for a fun night."

And with that, he flew off.

But the night was far from over.

* * *

As he flew home, Danny looked down at Amity. It looked so beautiful from the sky. Despite the frequent ghost attacks, the city always seemed tranquil. He saw the light coming from homes and apartments in the city, a warm light beckoning its residents home. He saw downtown, and the cars speeding down the roads, looking like little toys from up so high. He saw the city's biggest park in the distance, the oak trees standing like silent sentries. And in the distance, he saw Fenton Works, and its distinctive Op Center sticking from the top. His home. Danny put on a burst of speed, wanting to get back as soon as possible. He didn't want to risk getting caught out of bed-it would raise way too many suspicions. His sister Jazz could probably cover for him, but he didn't want her to be put on the spot. Little did Danny suspect, that he was about to have an unexpected detour. 

Danny was flying over Casper High, when his ghost sense went off, a tiny wisp of blue mist spiraling into the sky, telling Danny that he couldn't rest yet.

"Oh, give me a break," Danny muttered, disappointed that he couldn't head home and get some sleep right away. He considered just ignoring it, but he knew that he couldn't. If the ghost he had just detected was dangerous, then he might wake up to a ravaged city. He sighed. "Well," he said. "Might as well get it over with."

He halted in midair and started looking around for his mysterious foe, and spotted him sitting on the roof of the school, hugging his knees. He looked normal enough from this distance. But that didn't mean anything. Danny had learned the hard way that ghosts were among the most deceptive creatures in existence. For all he knew, it was a ploy.

"_Well,_" he thought. "_Just sitting here won't reveal anything_."

He decided that a surprise attack was in order. If this guy sensed his presence, then Danny would probably end up in a world of hurt. He began charging up an ectoblast, and flew down as fast as he could. He landed behind his target, and held his hand inches away from the back of his head.

"Don't move," Danny said. He let a little confidence slip into his voice, knowing that he had his foe cornered. There wasn't much that the ghost could do without getting hit by the ectoblast in the process. "_Kind of disappointing,"_ Danny thought. _"I was hoping he'd put up more of a fight."_

However, things weren't going to work out as Danny had planned.

The guy started chuckling. "Well, well," he said. "It seems that my information was true. Fast, strong, and quick witted. Glad to see that Ember didn't misinform me."

"Ember!?" Danny exclaimed, surprised. "You're working for Ember?"

The guy chuckled again. "No..." he said.

And then he struck.

The ghost suddenly whipped his leg out at Danny's legs, bringing them out from under him. Danny was on his back before he realized what happened. Danny made a move to get up, but before he could, he found the cold steel barrel of an ectoplasm pistol in his face.

"More like working against her. Much like you are I suppose."

He suddenly began twirling the pistol, and deposited it in its holster, a small black leather case on his hip.

"She also told me about how easily Danny Phantom could be surprised."

He held out his hand to help up his fallen foe. Danny didn't take it, afraid that this was yet another ploy to "surprise him."

The guy chuckled again. Danny looked up into his face, and saw a grin splitting it.

"Don't worry. I'm not going to do anything. Just let me help you."

Danny gave him an odd look. "You're pretty friendly for a ghost."

"Yeah, well, just call me an exception to the norm."

Danny took his hand, and the guy helped him up.

"Thanks."

Danny brushed himself off, and gave the guy a look over. He had shock white hair, and glowing green eyes. He looked like he kept pretty fit, as he had a thin layer of muscle, and had a moderately large frame because of it. He was wearing a black jacket, jeans, and white shoes, with a jet black diagonal stripe running down the middle. But he found the guy's t-shirt to be the most interesting feature. While it was just a white shirt, it had a large black _S_ on the center of the shirt's chest.

"Would I be too bold as to ask your name? Seeing as you already know mine."

The guy grinned. "Specter."

"Specter, huh? Well, at least it's easy to remember."

Specter took on a look of mock offense. "Oh, and what's that supposed to mean? Danny Phantom, c'mon. That's original."

The two laughed like old friends, reuniting after a long time away from each other.

After the two had laughed themselves out, Danny took on a serious look. "So why exactly did Ember feel compelled to tell you all this stuff about me?"

"Uh, well she wasn't exactly...cooperative. It took a while before I could..._convince_ her to tell me what I wanted to know, if you catch my drift."

"I do. So, you new to Amity? I haven't seen you around before."

Specter looked up at the sky. "Yeah, just passing through." Danny thought he saw a look of sadness and pain cross his face as he looked up.

"Anyway," Specter said. He looked at Danny. "You looked like you were in an awful hurry to get somewhere."

"What? Oh, right. I uh..." Danny wasn't sure how to explain his destination without arousing suspicion.

Fortunately, Specter seemed to have sensed Danny's discomfort, and didn't push. "Well don't let me keep you."

"Uh...Thanks. Anyway, I'll see you around I guess."

"Trust me, you will. Later."

"Later."

Danny flew off, feeling confused, and a little curious about his newest acquaintance. "_Maybe I should talk to Ember about him..._" Danny thought.

Meanwhile, back on the school roof, Specter watched Danny fly off. "_Very interesting_," he thought. He felt a little guilty about lying to Danny. But the truth would've just raised several more questions that Specter wasn't quite ready to answer. The truth was he hadn't learned all he had about Danny from Ember.

He'd gotten the information straight from Vlad Masters' personal journal.


	2. Chapter Two Specter's Anger

_**NEW FACES, CHAPTER TWO.

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**_

Wisconsin, 5 months, 3 weeks ago.

He raised his head weakly. He had no idea how long he'd been here. Had it been three hours? Three days? Three years? His sense of time had gone out the window. Fiery blood, terrible screams, and tears were all that consumed his days by this point. Cries of pain had become his lullabies, the screech of the mechanical behemoth behind him his alarm clock. He felt his sanity slowly fading away, the pain taking it away piece by piece.

The sadist hadn't been by in a few days. He didn't care. The techies were able to take up the mantle of his tormentor pretty well. They became the subjects of his hatred, his disgust. He wanted nothing more than to break free of this cell, the needles, the pain, and he wanted to make them feel everything they were subjecting him too in his own way.

Suddenly, the door at the other end of the room opened. One of the techies walked in. He felt hatred, dark and burning, well up inside him. The techie glanced at one of the monitors and smiled mirthlessly.

"Well, well, looks like the experiments are taking their toll aren't they?"

He walked up to the glass wall of the cell. If looks could kill, then he was putting the poor techie on a spear.

Suddenly, a look of sadness spread across the guy's face. "I don't even want to think about what you're going through. But don't worry; it'll all be over soon..."

* * *

Amity Park, Present Day. 

Danny let out a long yawn. Getting to sleep last night had been a challenge. After everything that had happened the night before, it wasn't hard to figure out why. After all, there was a new ghost in Amity. Danny had spent most of last night contemplating his meeting with Specter, playing it over and over again in his mind, coming up with a new theory each time as for who the mysterious ghost was, and what he was doing in town, before finally drifting off to sleep.

Suddenly, a dry voice cut across the classroom.

"Mr. Fenton, while I know 17th century poets aren't exactly captivating, it is a part of this class," Mr. Lancer said coldly. "It might not be a bad idea to pay attention."

"Sorry sir, I had some trouble getting to sleep last night."

Lancer was, as always, unsympathetic to Danny's plight. "Well then, maybe you should..."

Lancer's latest lecture was cut short by a knock at the door. He glared at Danny, as if this latest interruption was somehow his fault. He went to the door, opened it and stepped out into the hallway. Danny saw Principal Ishiyama standing outside, tapping her foot impatiently. She spoke briefly with Lancer, and Danny saw his teacher nod. He stepped back into the class, a small grin on his face.

"Well class, it would appear that we have a new student."

He gestured to someone out in the hall.

A scrawny youth walked into the room. He had a bushy mound of brown hair, and deep brown eyes. He was wearing a black pair of sneakers, with white laces, a pair of blue jeans, and a black shirt with the number _42_ etched on it in white.

"This is Will Jameson, and his family just moved here from New York."

"Hey," Will said, his voice a deep bass that cut through the classroom. "How's it going?"

Lancer looked around. "Now where will you sit...?" His eyes fell on the empty desk next to Danny. "Right there should work. Who knows, maybe Mr. Fenton will be able to stay awake with you next to him," he said coldly.

Will grabbed his books and walked to the desk without a word. He flopped down, took out a black binder, and started copying down the notes. Danny stared at him for a moment. He must've noticed because he turned towards Danny, and stared back.

And after a long moment, Will cracked a smile. "Hey." Then he turned back and kept copying. Danny shook his head. He would have time to stare at the new kid later. Right now he had to get the notes down. But that didn't stop him from throwing an occasional glance at him...

* * *

Suddenly, the lunch bell rang. Danny grabbed his bag and walked out of the classroom. In the hall, he saw Dash Baxter and his jock cronies harassing Will. 

"...I'm the coolest guy at this school," Dash was saying. "And getting in with me and my friends will be the quickest way to becoming cool. So? What do you say?"

Will looked up at Dash, and then threw a glance at Danny. "Hey, tell me something; is this guy always a complete moron, or is he having an off day?"

Both Danny and Dash gaped at Will. Most people didn't have the gall to say that kind of thing to Dash's face, unless they wanted a busted nose. Suddenly, Dash lunged out at Will, pinning him against the wall.

"What did you say? WHAT DID YOU SAY TO ME?"

Dash was going nuts. Danny felt sorry for the poor guy. No matter what he said, Dash was going to pummel him. Danny decided that he should probably help the poor kid out. After all, he wouldn't want Dash to break his face in half. Dash raised his fist, and Danny started rushing in, ready to push Will out of the way.

But that wouldn't be necessary.

Suddenly, Dash's fist stopped its journey upward. His eyes grew wide and his face became distorted in pain. Danny looked at Will, and found that he was grasping Dash's wrist. Hard. Danny was surprised to see that the scrawny youth was able to hurt the huge jock so much.

"You really don't want to do that buddy," Will said.

He then pushed Dash away. The jock grabbed his wrist, and gave it a look over. After deciding that no permanent damage had been done, he glared at Will and gestured to his friends. "Let's go. This kid's a dork to the core."

He then stalked off, his friends throwing dark looks at Will. The new kid only shrugged.

He then looked at Danny. "Well, that oughta keep him off my back. By the way, I saw you about to rush in there..."

Danny rubbed the back of his head, embarrassed. "Uh, well..."

Will grinned. "Thanks for that, but I'd rather handle my own battles. I'm sure you understand."

Danny nodded. While a little bit of help was always nice, there were some fights that you had to take care of yourself.

Will suddenly looked embarrassed. "Look, I'm uh...not entirely sure where the lunch room is. Would you mind showing me?"

Danny smiled. "Sure, no problem," he said.

As they walked down to the lunch room, Danny decided that now was as good a time as any to ask Will a few personal questions. He wanted to get to know the new kid a little better.

"So you're from New York," Danny asked.

"Yeah. We had to move down here for my dad's work, he's a hardware designer for Orange."

"Really," Danny asked. He was impressed. The Orange Computer Corporation was one of North America's best computer makers.

"Yeah."

"What's he working on now? Can you tell me?"

Will grinned. "I don't see why not. He's working on a new version of the oRadio."

"Seriously," Danny asked, surprised. The oRadio was one of Orange's latest and greatest inventions, a portable radio that could store music. "Did they streamline the downloading process?"

"Yeah. They're using a new type of nanochip to..."

The two chatted amiably all the way to the lunchroom. Will fed Danny as much information about his father's latest project as he could, and Danny absorbed every word of it, like a plant absorbing sunlight. When they got to the lunch room, Will started to look a little uncomfortable.

"I should go..." Will said awkwardly. "I don't want to interrupt your time with your friends..."

Danny wasn't going to let him go that easy though. After the discussion they had just had, he wanted to get to know Will more. "It's alright," Danny said. "I think they'd want to meet you."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, they won't mind."

Will shrugged. "Alright," he said.

Danny and Will flopped down on the bench. Sam Manson, and Tucker Foley, Danny's friends, smiled at them as they sat down. "Hi Danny," they said at the same time. "Who's this," Sam asked after she and Tuck had grinned at each other about their unrehearsed greeting.

"This is Will," Danny replied.

"Yo," Will said.

"Hey," Tuck said. "You're the new kid right?"

"Yeah."

"You'll love this Tucker," Danny said. "Will's dad works for Orange."

Tucker's eyes went wide. He was a technophile, and for him, finding someone who knew someone who worked for Orange, was like a Tom Cruise fan finding somebody who knew the famed couch-killer. "You're serious," he said, awed.

"Yeah," Danny said. "Will, why don't you tell him about the software he's working on?"

Tucker leaned forward, immediately interested. "I don't see why not," Will said. "They're working on a new chip for the oRadio which should..."

As the two discussed Orange's latest brain child, Sam tapped Danny on the shoulder. Danny looked over at her to see that she was gesturing for him to come closer. He complied.

"Uh, Danny..." she said, her voice rife with apprehension. "Are you sure you can trust him? After all, this wouldn't be the first time Vlad tried to get someone close to you so he could capture you."

"Sam, relax. I don't think he's working for Vlad," Danny said skeptically. "Vlad's learned his lesson about sending someone to get close to me; the whole Danni incident taught him that."

Just a few months earlier, Vlad had sent a female ghost clone of Danny, who posed as his cousin, and captured him for the bitter millionaire. But the plan fell apart when Danielle, the ghost clone who went by the name Danni, had betrayed Vlad.

Despite Danny's argument, Sam didn't look convinced. "Well, I guess you've got a point," she said grudgingly. "Just be careful Danny. You know how..."

Suddenly, Danny's ghost sense went off, the blue mist flying out of Danny's mouth, a sudden warning.

It came too late.

* * *

Suddenly, there was a crash. A section of the lunch room's roof crashed in, hitting the floor with a huge _crack_. The whole lunch room was suddenly a chaotic chamber, filled to the brim with panicked teens. Danny got up and made run to get to the bathroom or the hallway so he could go ghost. 

Unfortunately, Will had other plans.

The new kid grabbed Danny, Tucker, and Sam and ran outside. He shoved them down behind a cluster of trash cans. "Stay here," he said tersely. "I'm going to go get help." He then ran off to complete his mission.

Danny watched him run off, and waited until he was out of sight, before turning to his friends. "I'm going ghost!" he yelled. He stood up and closed his eyes.

Suddenly, a halo of light surrounded Danny and began moving up and down his body.

His clothes disappeared, replaced by a black and white hazmat suit. His eyes turned from a cold blue to a piercing green. His hair turned from midnight black to snow white.

And on the front of the hazmat suit, a white _D _appeared, with a black_ P _on the inside.

Danny Fenton had now become Danny Phantom.

Danny flew into the lunch room and got a good look at his enemy. It looked like a huge squid. It was a transparent green, with long tentacles extending out from its large gelatinous body. It had a pair of red eyes, and a large serrated gap for a mouth. Danny was reminded of the octopusses he had first fought after he had just gained his powers.

"Anybody in the mood for calamari?" Danny asked, flying in towards the large squid, his fists outstretched, about to send the ghost squid spinning.

But something hit it first.

Danny saw a black and white blur flash in front of him, before it hit the ghost squid, sending it phasing through the wall. Danny saw the blur halt, and saw who it really was.

It was Specter.

"Specter!?" Danny cried. "What are you doing here?"

Specter threw him a look and yelled "No time!" before phasing through the wall after the squid. He heard the door behind him hit the wall and turned around. He saw Sam, Tucker, and Will standing at the door.

"ANOTHER ghost?" Will exclaimed.

Danny grinned and nodded. "Another ghost," he said. Then he flew through the wall after Specter and the ghost squid.

As he emerged on the other side he saw Specter beating the squid with something. Danny saw a flash of silver and recognized the object as a sword. _"Where does a teenage ghost get a weapon like that?"_ Danny thought, completely shocked. "Specter?" Danny said tentatively. Specter didn't respond. He didn't even look at Danny. He just kept beating the squid. Danny then came to a shocking realization. He wasn't planning on capturing it.

Specter was trying to kill it.

Danny knew he couldn't let that happen. He couldn't watch Specter murder another ghost in cold blood. He flew toward Specter, going intangible while he was moving.

Meanwhile, Specter didn't even know that Danny was there. All he knew was that _he_ had sent one of his envoys. All he knew at that moment was that he was filled with a cold fury.

All he knew was that he was going to send _him_ a message...by killing the messenger.

He kept beating on the ectosquid with his swords, channeling his fury through the weapons.

He raised his arm, ready to deliver the final blow...when his body wouldn't obey his commands anymore.

He tried to bring the arm down, fighting the sudden paralysis that had engulfed his body. _"Why...won't...you...**MOVE !?**" _he thought, frustrated.

"Just relax," a voice said. Specter didn't know where the voice was coming from, but it sounded familiar and it sounded close.

It took him a moment to realize that the voice was Danny Phantom's...and it was coming out of his own mouth.

Suddenly, it all became clear. Danny must have seen Specter about to kill the ectosquid, and had decided to intervene. So he went for the most effective approach; overshadowing Specter, wrenching control away from him long enough for him to calm down

"_Alright Danny, that's enough,"_ he thought.He began focusing on an image of Danny flying out of his body, granting him control. That image became his sole thought, his one focus at that moment...

Meanwhile, Danny held the sword up. He felt Specter struggling against his control vainly. "Just relax," he said. After he said that, Danny felt Specter stop struggling. A moment later, Specter's voice began booming in his head. "Alright Danny, that's enough," he said. Suddenly, Danny felt something pushing him out of Specter's body. _"What the..."_ was Danny's last thought before he was forcibly ejected from Specter's body. He was sent flying, and hit the wall, yelling as he went. "Thanks Danny," he heard Specter say. He looked up and saw him holding the squid against the wall, a blade held a few inches away from the squid. Specter was grinning at him. "You stopped me from making a horrible mistake."

He then turned to the squid. "Now," he said. "You can go back and tell your master that he can send as many invitations as he wants, but I won't join him," he hissed at the squid. He then twirled around, and threw the squid into the air. "Go tell him!" he yelled, his voice rife with anger. The squid quaked and flew off.

Danny looked at Specter. "What was that about?"

"Just an old _friend's_ attempt to reconnect," he replied, spitting out the word friend like it was a bad taste in his mouth. "Don't worry about it."

Specter then turned toward Danny. "I've got to get going, all right?" he said. "I'll see you later."

"Yeah..." Danny said, a little surprised that Specter could go from angry to calm in all of two seconds. "See you..."

He watched Specter fly off. He then flew off to the bathroom, and transformed back into Danny Fenton. He walked out the door...

And ran right into Will.

* * *

Danny recoiled and saw his friend looking really miffed. He was no doubt a little angry about how he didn't stay put. 

He was right.

"WHAT PART OF STAY PUT DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND!?!?" Will boomed, his voice quivering with pent up anger. "YOU COULD'VE BEEN HURT!"

Danny gave an apprehensive little grin. "What can I say?" he said. "I felt that I needed to find help. If I hadn't found that Phantom kid flying around things could've turned out worse," he said.

He saw Will let out a frustrated sigh. "Completely hopeless," he said. "Well, at least you're alright," he said grudgingly.

He grinned at Danny. "Anyway, I think I need to step outside, get some air after all that excitement. I'll meet you back at the classroom."

"Right," Danny said.

He watched Will walk outside and then walked back to the classroom with Sam and Tuck. The two pumped Danny for information about what had happened with Specter and the squid, and they kept discussing it until Will walked back into the classroom. "We'll talk about it later," Danny said as Will flopped down in his seat. "And don't forget the...uh..._project_ after school, alright?"

Danny knew that Will had heard that comment, but he obviously didn't think it was any of his business, because he didn't ask. That was a relief for Danny, because he wasn't sure how he'd explain the _project_ after school.

Because the project, was an expedition into the Ghost Zone to find Ember, and discover what she knew about Specter.

* * *

A lot longer than my last fic, I know. Anyway, please review, and thank you for reading. 


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